STORYTELLER ; tim drake

preface

"You okay there Any?"

"Yeah why wouldn't I be?" Anya looked up from the book she was browsing through.

"I don't know, you've just been a bit, well, jumpy since we came to gotham," Sam deadpanned, "I know this is your hometown, but you look uncomfortable."

"Mhm."

"I'm serious!" Sam said, snatching the book from Anya to get the girl's attention. "Listen, I know Gotham was my idea but if you aren't comfortable..."

"What nonsense." Anya waved her off, taking the book back and setting it into the cart they'd been given before handing the cart back to Sam. "Gotham is my hometown Sammy, and I know you wanted to see some places here for that project of yours. Besides, mom and dad would have literally dragged me back if i hadn't visited this year, I don't have much of a choice."

Sam snorted, "yeah, I know but to be fair it was your last year at the hostel."

"Exactly, either way I'm done with Bludhaven and now they want me to stay in Gotham at least until I reach my twenties." Anya crouched down to the lower bookshelf, picking the one with the shiniest cover and handing it to Sam. she muttered, "Lived in one trash can for fifteen years, jumped to a smaller one for two and now I'm back here for three years and probably forever unless I figure out shit."

"That's tough bro." The older girl mocked her, "I wonder what you'll be figuring out."

Anya looked up to her friend, smacking her lightly with her book. "Shut up man."

"Make me, man," Sam smirked back at Anya, teasingly leaning in.

Anya laughed as she picked another book and set it in the cart. "I think that guy can do it for you, what's his name?"

"Shut up," Sam groaned, "besides he left me on delivered."

"Oo, sucks to suck."

"I hate you with my entire heart."

"No you don't."

"No I don't," Sam sighed, looking through the cart filled with books once Anya got up again. "Why do you need so many books, and why are so many of them classics and fairy tales?"

"Dad likes classics, I wanted to get him some stuff before we visited," Anya said, taking the cart back to look through the books. "And the fairy tales are for me."

"Aww, whittle Annie needs to be read a fairy tale to be put to bed, how adorable."

The younger girl laughed in turn, "well, i'm not the one who needs a light to sleep though." to which Sam gasped in offence.

"Hey! Gotham is scary!"

"It isn't, really."

"Yeah, well you guys have real bats and the vigilantes. All of them. We just got Nightwing, you guys have Batman and not to mention the crazies! Captain Boomerang, the Joker, you guys get all the big shits."

"Yeah the Bat vigilantes," Anya said bitterly, "we are so lucky with them, either way, you act like Blud is perfect and clean and crime free." she scoffed, "bestie, that place is just as bad."

"Gotham is worse, Bludhaven is like a trial place."

"Eh, valid," Anya admitted, "but no, these books are for a project I'm doing, something to pass time before they begin insisting I get a job with them."

"At GCPD?" Sammy stopped her friend, grabbing her shoulders and turning her to make sure they were face to face. She then shook Anya, "in the most corrupt police system in the world? Are they nuts?"